Corsica, ... can a 68 year old be narcissistic?... I guess
... not really a smile, ... more a grimace Oct 15 Sat, major news: Oct 8 views: ~40/d during trip
- there was a rain deluge early morning in Catania, so hour late leaving, and missed Milan-Paris connection, Alitalia arranged AF to Montreal, then an AC connection, so arrived home a few hours late, 83E charge for bike in Catania (75CAD on Sept 15)
- 3 good things in Sicily:......food was cheaper, Fabio turned out to be pretty good, last 3 cycling days were much better, eg Oct 11
- 3 bad things: .....cycled through more industrial areas than expected, surprised at general amount of garbage/litter, maps should be colour photocopies of already route-marked maps example(link) ... note: the black hand-drawn arrows before photocopying, and the handy dandy 'map-my-ride' profile (bottom left). The current booklet is labour intensive, and probably not appreciated.
- Comparing the trips, Corsica "9+" (same as in VQ 2006), Sicily "6.5" (Chris' impropriety aside). Fabio managed well on his own, one tidbit: he said he was very embarrassed to admit that there were "absolutely no tools" on the trip.
- thought for future: since Fabio was pretty good, and looking for business, we could get him to quote on a future trip. He's got lots of experience in mediterranean area, ..... fabio_croce@hotmail.com, +39 348 7400 943
- transfers by ferry and bus to Catania went smoothly, most of us had early dinner in Duomo square
- 8 of us took the hydrofoil ferry over to Volcano island, climbed to the crater rim, ... a good option for the last activity day. Tomorrow, Friday, we travel by 6:30AM ferry back to Sicily(2 hours), and then bus(2 hours) to Catania, and time to pack our bikes for our early Saturday AM flights back to Canada, ... there's some anxiety about Air Canada strike, but I'm on AF. Overall, the spirit/attitude seems to have improved in the last couple days.
- A 2 hour ferry ride at 9:00 AM over to Aolian islands (Lipari), carrying our bike and luggage onto/off-of the ferry to a rather new 4star hotel. Then with about 5-6 others did the 25 km circuit around the island, ... parts of which had 12-14 degree assents, ~30C in full sun, ... went shirtless, felt good.Towards the end there were some fabulous views of nearby volcanoes, and Etna in the distance.
- BEST DAY: An absolutely beautiful 90km ride Taomina to Milazzo Rte#185 over the NE range, max altitude 1125m, starting and ending at sea level. Altgough Sunday was horrid weather, today was 20C+ and sunny, ... perfect for cycling. Stopped in Novarra (cheese-rolling town) for spaggetti bolognaise, ... good. This was the first day that matched (possibly even surpassed) those in Corsica. Ironic: the day I was dreading, ... turned out the best. Tomorrow onto the Aolian islands for 2 nights.
- at a personal level: I feel fine (strong in fact), pulse normal, no hint of heart "flutter" when I climbed 1125m
- A rest day in Giardini Nexos, sunny cool windy ... so Tom and I took the intercity train along the coast to Messina, about a 45 min trip, 12E return, ... there, took a 45 min historical tourist train/cart city tour (... saw churches etc), checked inside the Duomo (impressive), then literally "walked-out" of a cafe after ordering food - since no! service for 20 min, instead had some pricey sandwiches in boutique type place... took the train back, ... overall not really great, but something to do. Messina seemed heavily congested with a lot! of cars, often triple parked. A major 'Carribean Navigator' cruise ship had disgorged many hundreds of cattle/passengers, ... so tourists everywhere.
- A 52 Km ride to Giardini Nexos, climbing up the flank of Etna, cloudy and eventually rainy and bloody cold, ... Etna has snow. Who would have thought one would be "cold and wet" in Sicily, ...well, we were ... to the point I was shaking uncontrollably, we found a patisserie at about 20 km from hotel and sought refuge (out of the rain, wind). I was soooo glad to arrive and have a hot shower, ... the saving grace is the possibility the weather will hopefully change dramatically from one day to the next.
- Worth a mention: passed through Zafferana that had a large street market, with almost a festival (parade/band), ... got a stong feeling of being in Italy. Fabio seems to be managing well on his own, without Chris, ... he has a lot of experience.
- After a 90km day to SG. LaPunta, Chris Winter, the leader and chief guide, announced that he was going home, with 7 days to go, left in a taxi at 6:06PM to the Catania airport. When asked why, he said his stiff neck was part of it, but mainly because "I'm homesick as hell", I miss my daughter, my mother has breast cancer, and we're ordering windows for the new house well, ... that's what he said ...mmm, provoked lots of further discussion and speculation.
- It surprised us all (I think), and Chris added that he felt the local guide would "shine". ... probably true. He said he agonized over the decision, and apologized. In my humble opinion, I really doubt Chris actually "likes" the day-to-day rigamarole of guiding of a trip, ... even under perfect conditions ... maybe he's more attuned to the "design" aspect of organizing a trip. I think he did the design(routing etc) pretty much from scratch (as opposed to echoing Backroads), and put a lot of effort in the wordng of the route, ... but on the next day, Fabio changed!! the route completely.
- At 7:00 am the day started rainy and blustery, but got much better quickly, sunny and maybe 22C in the sun. Found a good place for lunch pasta dish plus 1.5L water for 3.5E, ... perfect for cyclng. The final 20Km of today's route were tricky, and we made a couple 5km errors. Martha Bohm has a good nose for directions.
- A rest day in Caltageroni, most of us vanned 30Km to see a restoration of private, Roman villa of ~200AD, 10% finished. Bought fresh shop-made sandwiches and ate them in town square . Kind of cool, maybe 17C, when not in direct sun. Scenery on the way to villa was the best so far... at times reminded me of Tuscany. Then replaced my rear brake pads, soooo! easy to do, all of about 10minutes, whereas I was prepared for it to be an hour or more, .... Im sure they will need some further adjustment tomorrow ... turned out fine, very!! minor adjustment needed.. Dinner with Tom, Sharon, Bill. Weather has turned rather blustery, 17C at 9PM, rain forcasted in the morning.
- A 90 km ride from Modica to Caltageroni, sunny day. At breakfast, Chris said his neck was so painful, that he was thinking of going home, ...mmm, provoked lots of chatter and speculation. As we started, Rory had a defective chain and when he asked Fabio if he had a pair of pliers, Fabio said "we have no tools at all", ... that actually shocked me. Later in the day Rory bought a new chain, he learned to regret since it was more a cassette problem. The cycling day was really varied, about 1200m of climbing, none of which was too steep (many switchbacks), lots of segments with big (18 wheeler) truck traffic (...I'm surprised), and sections with lots of litter. Dinner, included, was at a place that was a last minute substitute, that served a very good seafood dish as a first course. Sat opposite Chris at dinner, traded stories about Romania, and he seemed less troubled by his neck, might be enjoying himself more. BTW ... pulse at the end of the cycling day: about 80, ... seems reasonable. Anxious to see how the Ontario election turns out, whe we wake up Oct 7... I voted early,... for McGuinty .
Oct 5 Wednesday
- Rest day near Modica, 27C and sunny (at the start), ... adjusted my problematic brakes (at one point in the rain I was dragging my sandal in a attempt to stop), ....then 9 of us took van to town saw the churches etc, and had lunch in centre of town, .. a town that was rebuilt (new by local standards) after the 1639 earthquake and wins awards for city design. A bit of rain too.
me, Oct 4 in swanky hotel in rural sicily, near Modica - Cycled about 70 km to a rural hotel close to Modica where we stay for 2 nights, ... its a pretty swanky place, out in the middle of nowhere. Today we got caught in a half hour deluge, ... got soaking wet, and road the rest of the day in wet cycle shorts, ... makes for a sore, chaffed butt ... maybe Aquaphor(a healing ointment) will help. Yesterday's repair shop effort seems to work "OK", as the gears seem to slide pretty easily. The scenery in Sicily is not nearly as good as the spectacular coastline of Corsica, but the food in Sicily is much more reasonably priced, ... had a small calzone and generous gelato for 2.50E, and dinner for 11E, whereas it would be double that in Corsica. Interesting: Fabio says Sicilians with common company salary (about 1800-2000E/mo) pay about 2/3s in taxes, vs about 1/3rd in Canada, ... Fabio has spent years in Canada (as a guide in Algonquin etc), and has a high respect for the "efficient" tax spending in Canada, despite what we might think. In Italy the result of high taxes is a big underground economy, that impoverishes the government.
Oct 3 Mon,
- First cycling day in Sicily,... 90 km to Syracusia, led out of Catania in a group ride by Chris/Fabio fo the first 5-10km, then at th 34 km mark I jammed my chain badly, couldnt fix, ... so phoned the van and they picked me up and I went to bike shop at destination (first shop couldn't fix it) and I found another one on my own (...with difficulty). Bill Petrusiak had derailleur and chain problems, and Sharon cycled to Syracuse on her own. Chris seemed a little frazzled by the day's events (more cycling problems than you'd expect). Had a bet (a coffee) with Fabio (the: Sicilian guide) about Italy having occupied the Antalya region of Turkey in the 1920s, I'm sure I'm right, but maybe I should just keep my mouth shut. Good pizza dinner with Rory June |Tom Don Kathy, Doug.
- Official trip begins today,... met all except Bohms and Judy at breakfast, all (including bikes) seem to have arrived without incident. Will transfer to the main hotel, assemble bikes, then walking city tour at 3:00pm. 14 participants (3 couples, 8 singles) + Chris and Sicilian guide (who Chris has never met, who presumably will give "colour" commentary). Chris has been here several days and says the road routing is rather complex.
Oct 1 Saturday
- Arrived in Sicily on time at 3:05. All of us were charged 55 Euros for a second bag, ... seemed fair enough. Overall the transfer went smoothly, ... Catania seems more city-like, than a small town. |Chris met us at the airpport and unfortunately got a ticket for overtime parking. Cycling starts on Monday. On first arrival in Catania, it seemed dingy and worn-out, but later in the evening it changed to being impressive, the weddings we passed by, the lighting on the baroque buildings, the crowds etc, ... and the dinner was better priced (half of Corsica) served by a burly mafia-type cook/waiter, who was so abrupt and idiosyncratic as to have us in stitches.
Overall Corsica, 3 impressions:
- 3 good things: sunny weather, happyhour "idea" (me, no alcohol), Ana's breakfast supplements, (... but overall Corsica is fabulous)
- 3 dubious things: overall high prices (say ~50%higher), occasional "snippy" service, cant really think of third negative, ... really not much to complain about.
Sept 30 Friday
- Bused back to Bastia, 8:00 to 11:15... met a few of 2nd group, boxed bike, ... ready for Sicily flights Oct 1.
- A rest day in PortoVecchio, ... may go to beach for an hour or two. Every day seems sunny and 27C, and you get so you take it for granted. Tomorrow we bus to Bastia at 8:30. Feel fine.
Sept 28 Wednesday
- A fairly short ride 45km to Porto Vecchio, ... our last stop before Bastia (where we fly out Oct 1, to Sicily). Had excellent lasagne for lunch, then walked to the port.
- A free day in Bonifacio, sunny, forecasted 28C, so bought lunch and litre of juice at Casino, and took a 20E 4 hr boat ride (+8others) to neighboring small island, ... back at 4:30pm... just one more riding day, + one optional day, then bus to Bastia on Friday for early flight to Sicily.
Sept 26 Monday
- A beautiful ride to Bonifacio,
65Km with a 350 m climb to Sartene, the most Corsican of Corsica’s towns,
then lunch at 45Km point, ... where the others said "the best
omelettes in their lives", which I conveyed to the cook, ... her face
beamed. A threesome passed us; one with Cdn flag, and a Quebecois said the
flag carrier was a French impostor.
Sept 25 Sunday
- A 75 km ride Portofino, a stiff
13-17 degree grade at one point, had to walk ... I can walk as fast as I
can ride. Kind of a dull day but at least better than baking sun (...or so
I rationalize). A group included dinner by the sea, beef bourguignon, and
chocolate pie.
Sept 24 Saturday
- a day off in Ajaccio, strolled around town, less warm say 25C, some cloud,... met up with others, visited the usual sites (Napolean's birthplace, etc) had coffee, bought couple typique "provence" table cloths, had haircut 17.5E, .. pretty relaxed easy pace, only 3 more place-to-place cycle days, then the 3 section flight to Sicily, ... kind of worried about the bike transfer, if there's something to worry about, I'll worry (...silly me!). At 6:00PM, Dave the driver/photographer, plans a slide show, maybe of Sicily (a favourite of his).
Sept 23 Friday
- Porto to Ajaciio, 80 Km, was a particularly nice ride (... aren't they all?) with a fairly stiff climb 500m out of Porto, then a fair bit of route near sea-level, then another final climb of 400m+, sunny and quite hot 27C. Had had excellent pizza lunch in Sagone, on the beach, with the usual group,... the waitress/owner was charming and we talked a bit about the "separatist" Corsicans who speak Corse ... closer to italian, and spray-paint out the French on the road signs ... a variation on Quebec, but equally stupid. Felt rested/fine all day even though a bit of a cold (really more just a bad sounding! cough), and a pulse of thirty (if you can believe it) in the early morning when perfectly idle, or 140+ if climbing. I'm not 100% sure my heart monitor is reading correctly at 30 bpm, ... scary, but I feel fine, ... at other times it seems consistent or right. Dinner's "plat du jour" was particularly good, at the "rubbertree" restaurant (also ate there in 2006), ..offered us a "digestif" on-the-house.
- Today was a rest day in Porto (in 2006 went scuba diving, disappointing) so out to the boulangerie to buy lunch for a boat trip 10:30-3:30PM (biggish at 122 passengers) to Scandal Nature Reserve, and in the afternoon to the “calanques”, pretty much like the trip out of Cassis, near Marseille, all of which was very nice, but makes me realize that it’s the cycling that is the “glue” that really holds the trip together, because doing these touristy things (like the boat trip), would be alright for a day or two, but that’s about it.
- BTW: As I sat after breakfast, I see my heart monitor reads 35 bpm for several minutes (…seems scarily low but maybe it shows it can!! rest (and I feel fine), … because I know it will soar to a 140+ if I walk up two flights of stairs.
Sept 21 Wednesday
- Today’s 82 Km to Porto, was superb, …I heard many comments along the lines “it just doesn’t come much better”, … truly spectacular riding along the coast, grades not much more than 6 degrees, climb of a few cols, the max being 408m. Riding with Kevin and Geraldine (Deanne still has sore wrist). Stopped near Galleria, roughly midpoint and had lasagne for lunch … was excellent, the only thing on the menu…. better to have one good thing, than pages and pages of offerings that aren’t very good.
Sept 20 Tuesday
- It’s a two nighter in Calvi, so I took it as a 100% rest day, as did many others, since yesterday (Monday) was so strenuous. Today: beautiful sunny 27C, posted my offline journal to my blog, then had a picnic lunch (from patisserie) with Bill and Shirley by the pool, and then took pathway down to sea (huge boulders), where I sunbathed like a lizard on a rock for 2 hours. Then to SuperU, to buy some ham slices to supplement the meagre typical French breakfast tomorrow. Also bought earplugs to dampen roommate’s snoring/etc sounds. Tonight was a group dinner (at my request to Ana) which I think everybody liked, 15E +5E for .5L of house wine…. excellent soup, fish/pasta, dessert.
Sept 19 Monday
- 80 Km to Calvi. Overnight it was really windy … you could hear it howling really loudly, … like you were on Baffin Island. At breakfast we met a few another group of 8 cyclists from Quebec, group “Equilibre”. Feeling a bit queasy, and the blustery weather I asked about going in the truck, but ended up cycling, and glad I did. I cycled with Kevin, Deanne, and Geraldine pretty much all day, stopped at a nice country restaurant for the “plat due jour”, sauté de veau, 12E. The wind was gale force strong, and at the top of the first hill when there was some rain, we had to seek refuge behind a stone building, but the wind dries you out pretty quickly. Almost at the end of the day, weather much better, 5Km from destination, Deane skidded in a round about, tumbled into the curb, did a face plant, hurt her wrist and worried about her teeth. Dinner with Lindsay (originally from Zimbabwe, and surprisingly sympathetic views on Mugabe), Kathy Tom and Ana.. had wild boar, … not that good. Feel dead tired after so much climbing, after a strenuous day, ..... legs feel like wet noodles.
Sept 18 Sunday
- Today was our first full cycling day, 87Km, around Cap Corsica, to St Florent, everybody agreed it was spectacular scenery, with the weather surprisingly dull. Lots of rumblings about coming rain. Unfortunately I woke up about an hour later than planned and pretty much everybody had left, … but in many ways I don’t mind cycling alone and was I in the last group in. There was a group dinner in the same hotel we stayed in 2006, modest but good. This is the first day I started to take my flutter medication; … pulse seems normal, 50 bpm on rising, but 140 on climbing (to be expected), and 80 or so after 5-10 rest. So pretty normal ... 73 bpm as I write this blog. I always worry about my bike as I reassemble the various parts, … but it seems OK.
Sept 17 addendum
- After the group reception, lots of humorous reference about them being there because I recommended it. Then 6 of us (DaveH, Brian, Doug, Rory, PaulMunson,) walked to town for dinner, … pricey at 35E plus drinks. Earlier in the day bought at Casino a European adapter (forgot mine at home, silly me) and fresh lithium batteries for my heart monitor, also have a supply of those at home (silly me).
Sept 17
- It's amazing, with 20 cyclists there were 20 different stories of trials and tribulations of flight, Rory's flight had to put down in St John's due to sick woman, ... took five hours, missed connections. I think mine was pretty straight forward, I got paged in Paris CDG, 10 times because my bike case lost its official luggage tag and I had to go out on tarmac and personally identify it, in case it was a planted bomb (I guess), I didn't hear the pages, because I could only find a seat 3 gates away. Travelling with a bike really increases anxiety-tiredness the anxiety level, and often think is this (travel) really worth it?
- arrived in Bastia on time, after transfers through Paris and Marseille, ... pretty much everything as planned, 30C and sunny. Learned: 1)printing boarding pass at home (most dont), put me in an express line, 2) I should have prepaid for 2nd piece of luggage, bike, on line,.... would have saved 45 min queuing at cashier, 75 CAD
- as of 9pm have met about 12 of the group, Rory's AC flight had to put-down in St Johns due to ill passenger
